PEPS Group Leader — Military Family Support

Contract PEPS Group Leader — Military Family Support

Since 1983, PEPS has provided neighborhood-based parent peer-support programs for families. Group Leaders are integral to our mission, working alongside parents to facilitate conversation and foster connection. The majority of our amazing Group Leaders are volunteers. As a non-profit organization, we also bring in a small group of dedicated, paid contract Leaders with professional experience working with families, who will provide support to a limited number of groups.

PEPS is partnering with Greentrike Children's Museum at Joint Base Lewis-McChord (JBLM) to offer a drop-in support group for military families.
We are seeking an experienced facilitator with a background in or education and knowledge of military family life to facilitate monthly 1.5-hour in-person drop-in peer-support groups for military families.

This program offers peer support and education resources for parents of children ages 0-12, with most participants having babies, toddlers, and young preschoolers. Unlike traditional PEPS Groups, this is a drop-in format, meaning membership changes from month to month as military families navigate deployments, relocations, and varying schedules.

While parents engage in facilitated discussion, Greentrike Children's Museum staff provide age-appropriate activities for children, allowing parents to focus on connection and learning. Leaders will facilitate conversations using the PEPS curriculum and help participants feel welcome.

Group discussion topics include universal parenting themes—sleep, child development, positive discipline, and building resilience—as well as military-specific challenges such as managing deployments, maintaining routines during transitions, coping with frequent moves, and building community in new places.

Sessions may also include parents participating in activities such as role-playing and breakout groups to facilitate understanding of information, skill development, and social connections with one another. The emphasis of this program is on creating a safe community where parents can share information and provide mutual support to help build confidence in their parenting abilities.

PEPS provides comprehensive training for all new Group Leaders, including orientation to PEPS facilitation practices, program curriculum, and guidelines for supporting military families. The Leader will receive ongoing consultation and support from PEPS staff throughout the contract period.

This position also includes the opportunity to mentor and train a parent co-leader who will shadow the group and potentially transition into a leadership role.

The group meets monthly on the 3rd Thursday from 10 - 11:30 am at the Greentrike Children's Museum at JBLM throughout the year. Depending on the start date, the Leader will facilitate 6-11 groups annually. The dates and times may vary as the program evolves, and PEPS staff will work with the leader to coordinate schedules.

The expected time commitment is approximately 3-4 hours per month, including meeting preparation, the 90-minute session, communication with PEPS staff and Greentrike, brief follow-up with participants as needed, and attendance at periodic check-ins or training sessions.

Reliability is essential. While we can arrange for substitutes or reschedule in the case of planned vacations or emergencies, we need someone who can commit to consistent monthly facilitation and provide advance notice when unavailable.

• Attend required training with PEPS staff and orientation meetings with Greentrike Children's Museum staff.
• Plan, attend, and facilitate monthly drop-in group meetings; create a welcoming environment for new and returning families; lead discussions and activities that support peer connection and provide evidence-based parenting information.
• Adapt facilitation style to accommodate a changing group composition each month; skillfully integrate new participants while maintaining continuity for returning families.
• Address both universal parenting topics and military-specific concerns with sensitivity, cultural competence, and…